A wedding ring which has been in a family for three generations has been stolen.

Police have now released pictures of the ring and other jewellery items which were stolen during a burglary in Wigan in a bid to trace them.

At around 5.30pm on Saturday (August 22), a group walked down a public footpath to a house on Longbrook in Shevington.

They broke into the property and began to ransack it, swiping 12 commemorative coins, two gold necklaces, a gold Egyptian-style pendant and the gold wedding ring, altogether worth more than £2,000.

The offenders then fled the scene.

Constable Steve Aspinall said: “While the jewellery is valuable in its own right, it is the sentimental value of these items which makes the victim so desperate to have them returned.

“All of the stolen items belonged to the victim’s parents, who have now sadly passed away.

“The wedding ring in particular is of tremendous sentimental value, having been passed down through the family for three generations.

“Fortunately this jewellery is quite distinctive, especially the Egyptian-style pendant, so I am hopeful that members of the public and pawnbrokers would recognise it if they came across it, or were offered it for sale.

“I would ask that anyone who believes they have seen, or been offered, jewellery similar to those in the pictures will contact police and help us reunite the victim with her parents’ treasured possessions.”

Anyone with information is asked to call 101 or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.